Real estate · County · Maryland
Real estate businesses in Howard County, MD
How Howard County, MD compares with other counties and the U.S. for real estate businesses: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 35 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,889 of 2,229 scored counties
#18 of 24 scored counties in Maryland
- Listings
- 752
- 44 chain locations (6%)
- Official establishments
- 369
- +6.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $2.5B
- On rent and homeowner costs · $20,322 a household
- Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
- 76
- 24% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 62.1
- 61% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 339,183
- +1.9% since 2020
See the real estate businesses around any address in Howard County
The site report maps the real estate businesses on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of Howard County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
The Groundwork market score for real estate businesses in Howard County is 35 (lower middle), #1,889 of 2,229 scored counties and #18 of 24 scored counties in Maryland. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
As of September 2026, map listings count 752 real estate businesses in Howard County. Of those, 44 are chain locations, or 6%, against 6% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 62.1, 61% above the U.S. rate of 38.5.
Household spending on rent and homeowner costs in Howard County comes to about $2.5B a year: $20,322 per household, 22% above the U.S. average. Housing spending per office is 24% below the U.S. figure. That figure is all rent and homeowner costs, used as a measure of housing demand; it is not money real estate businesses take in.
In 2023, official counts showed 369 businesses with payroll in Howard County classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors, up 6.0% from 2019. That is one for every 328 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 7 SBA-backed loans worth $3M have gone to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Howard County. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Howard County grew 1.9%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Howard County compares
The same measures for Maryland and the whole U.S. Housing spending per listing divides all rent and homeowner costs by the listings counted: a measure of housing demand for each business, not money any of them take in, so it is shown against the U.S. (100) only. Households per establishment divides households by the official count.
| Measure | Howard County | Maryland | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 62.1 | 40.4 | 38.5 |
| Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | 76 | 100 | 100 |
| Households per official establishment | 328 | 454 | 414 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +6.0% | +9.2% | +15.8% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +1.9% | +1.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs | $20,322 | $17,488 | $16,661 |
| Median household income | $149,763 | $103,678 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 35 | 44 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 348 → 369+6.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 3,016
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $270.6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 2,095Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 75244 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 568The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 7
- Amount
- $3M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Howard County, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.
Population and households in Howard County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 339,183+1.9% since 2020
- Households
- 121,065
- Median age
- 40.7
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 71%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 251 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 1,340
- Median household income
- $149,763+23.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $184,243
- Median home value
- $597,900
- Jobs located here
- 185,575
- Daytime population
- 363,145Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Howard County?
These figures cover the whole county. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the real estate businesses on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of Howard County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardReal estate across Maryland
Every Maryland market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Maryland for real estate businesses, numbered among those based in Maryland, with Howard County marked.
Top counties in Maryland
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Caroline County, MD | 66 | 16 | 12.8 | 262 | +2.5% | #333 of 2,229 |
| 2Somerset County, MD | 64 | 10 | 12.0 | 263 | +1.7% | #398 of 2,229 |
| 3Cecil County, MD | 56 | 105 | 25.9 | 145 | +3.2% | #783 of 2,229 |
| 4Allegany County, MD | 55 | 46 | 16.8 | 186 | −1.6% | #818 of 2,229 |
| 5Charles County, MD | 55 | 250 | 41.1 | 104 | +5.9% | #842 of 2,229 |
| 6St. Mary’s County, MD | 53 | 130 | 30.6 | 138 | +2.4% | #936 of 2,229 |
| 7Prince George’s County, MD | 53 | 1,006 | 28.9 | 137 | +0.5% | #937 of 2,229 |
| 8Dorchester County, MD | 52 | 28 | 20.7 | 158 | +3.4% | #983 of 2,229 |
| 9Carroll County, MD | 50 | 196 | 30.5 | 139 | +2.2% | #1,082 of 2,229 |
| 10Frederick County, MD | 50 | 467 | 44.6 | 97 | +11.0% | #1,108 of 2,229 |
| 18Howard County, MD | 35 | 752 | 62.1 | 76 | +1.9% | #1,889 of 2,229 |
Other business types in Howard County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many real estate businesses are in Howard County, MD?
Howard County has 752 real estate businesses on map listings as of September 2026. 44 of them (6%) are chain locations. The listings count real estate agents and brokers, property managers, mortgage brokers and lenders, and home inspectors. Official counts show 369 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in 2023, up 6.0% from 2019. Official counts list 2,095 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Howard County, MD spend on rent and homeowner costs?
About $2.5B a year, or $20,322 per household. That is 22% above the U.S. average (an index of 122, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 752 real estate businesses on map listings, housing spending per office is 24% below the U.S. figure. The spending figure is all rent and homeowner costs, a measure of housing demand, not money real estate businesses take in. It is estimated from the incomes of the 121,065 households in Howard County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Howard County, MD compare with the U.S. for real estate businesses?
Howard County has 62.1 real estate businesses per 10,000 households, 61% above the U.S. rate of 38.5. The index of housing spending per office is 76, where 100 is the U.S. At the national ratio of real estate businesses to household spending, Howard County would have about 568, against 752 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 328 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. The official count rose 6.0% from 2019 to 2023, against +15.8% for the U.S.
How fast is Howard County, MD growing?
Population estimates put Howard County at 339,183 people in 2025, up 1.9% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 121,065 households. The median household income in Howard County is $149,763 a year, 86% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 23.6% from the 2015–2019 survey, before inflation.
What is the Groundwork market score?
The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. Howard County scores 35 for real estate businesses (lower middle), #1,889 of 2,229 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Howard County. It maps the real estate businesses on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.
How the score works · Top markets for real estate businesses · All 56 business types in Howard County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Howard County?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
The button opens the report at the center of Howard County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.